FANTASY FOOTBALL IN-SEASON FEATURES

Movin’ Up

Breakdown: The season of fantasy football is coming to an end in many leagues. With that in mind we realize that, minus the opportunity that may arise due to injury, the players with something to bring to the table this fantasy season are pretty much well known to all. Therefore our perspective must change a bit, leading us to look beyond just this season but to next season as well. Whether for keeper league purposes, trade purposes, or whatever other purposes may be pertinent, we’ll be taking a weekly look at players and situations that fantasy owners should be aware of in order to be on top of their game moving forward.

Vince Young (TDN) – I’ve been watching Young for a few weeks, purposely putting off writing about him here for a few reasons. The primary of these reasons is the fact that his volatile personal issues have made him such an enigma over his NFL career, making him very unreliable from a fantasy perspective. However, it would seem that something has definitely changed in him, as he appears to be a changed man in many respects, nowhere more so than on the field. Whatever was plaguing him seems to be a thing of the past, and he looks much more like the player the team thought they were drafting a few years ago than the one who was almost done with football just a few months ago.

Since regaining the starting job for the Titans a few weeks ago, basically in a desperation effort by the team to see what they had in Young before the end of what appeared, at 0-6, to be a lost season, Young has led them to a 7-1 record over that span. In fact, he has them in playoff contention, which no one thought would be possible just a few weeks ago. It is still a long shot, but well within the realm of possibility if the team continues to play as they have. Young, while not being spectacular, has been solid. He’s able to run, though he doesn’t resort to it as much as he once did, and he’s got a respectable TD/INT ratio going, with 10 touchdowns to four interceptions. From a fantasy perspective he’s not going to light it up every week, but he, and the coaching staff, does seem to be getting more and more comfortable with throwing. It would be safe to think that with the talent they’ve amassed at receiver, by early next season this offense could be very fantasy friendly, with Young at least a solid mid-tier backup or low end starter in most leagues.

A couple of years ago fantasy geeks were going nuts about the upside that Young was bringing with him to the league, but that never materialized. Now, a bit down the road, the light is burning again and appears to be ready to shine brightly going forward. Expect some good things from Young as he appears poised to become the Titan’s leader for the foreseeable future. If you’re looking for an exciting option at quarterback with a bit of risk but plenty of reward, you could do a whole lot worse than latching on to Young.